Legacy

I am overwhelmingly ashamed that Legacy by Cayla Kluver has been available for so long, and I had no idea!  Seriously, it's just been sitting out there for a couple of years, and I could have been loving it all this time.  Thank goodness I found it now.  In all honesty, it was the perfect time for me to find Legacy because, to me, it is somewhat similar to The Girl of Fire of Thorns (check out my review here), which I adore.  It was very nice to find a series that gives me the same vibe since I will be waiting for the next Girl of Fire and Thorns for quite some time.

In Legacy, Alera, Crown Princess of Hytancia, has reached the age at which she is expected to marry.  The biggest problem with this is that there is no one Alera would like to spend her life with.  Unfortunately, Alera's father the king, has other plans.  He has selected the captain of the guard's son to be Alera's husband and consequently, his successor.  Steldor, is amazingly attractive, strong, capable, and according to Alera, repulsive.  Alera seems to be the only girl in the kingdom to feel this way.  The king, does not take her feelings to heart, though.

As if this were not enough, Hytancia's dark past has returned.  The long dormant enemies, the Cokyri have resurfaced.  The Cokyri and Hytancians were in a vicious war sixteen years ago.  This included the abduction of 48 infant boys.  All of those bodies were returned except one.  This bizarre happening remained a mystery.  That is until the boy returned.  Narian brings with him the mystery of the enemy as well as himself.  Alera is drawn to this intriguing stranger.  But, would her father ever agree to such a union? 

Oh, my!  This is a great book.  I would certainly recommend it highly, particularly if you are a fan of The Girl of Fire and Thorns.  While everyone may not agree that these books are similar, they certainly give me the same feeling of excitement and adventure set in the beautiful time of kings and queens.  Love.  I am excited to read Allegiance and Sacrifice!

Goddess Interrupted

I return to a trip into the underworld again, I mean its been a few weeks, so I felt the need to read a little more about my friends down there.  Goddess Interrupted (watch the trailer here), just like The Goddess Test and Goddess Hunt before it, was fantastic.  Aimee Carter has built an interesting and exciting underworld whose inhabitants are enough like the classical figures to be familiar but fresh enough to be exciting.

In Goddess Interrupted, Kate has returned from her first six months away from the underworld prepared to attend her coronation which will solidify her place as queen of the underworld.  However, as the name of the book would imply, the ceremony is interrupted by dear old Calliope.  Calliope is still brooding over the punishment Kate issued her in The Goddess Test.  This time she's not alone though.  She has managed to partially free Cronus, King of the Titans, threatening not only the members of the council, but all of humankind as well.

As a result, Kate and the others find themselves poised for a war with the Titans.  In addition to preparing for battle with the Titans, Kate also battles for Henry's heart.  Through a crazy twist of fate, Persephone winds up on the scene again.  This definitely doesn't do anything for the strained relationship between Henry and Kate.

So, readers are left with another giant, nail biting cliffhanger.  It's clear to me that I'll need to visit Carter's underworld again very soon.  I won't be able to last very long without knowing what is happening!  I definitely have The Goddess Legacy and The Goddess Inheritance on my to read list.

Sapphire Blue

*Warning: If you haven't read Ruby Red (check out my review here), begin there.  It's fabulous.

I have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Kerstin Gier's Sapphire Blue for what seems like forever.  I am so happy I've finally been able to read it.

Sapphire Blue continues the story of the time traveling families, the Montrose and the D'Villiers.  Gwyneth Shepherd is of the Montrose line, whose ladies carry the time traveling gene.  She has only a week before the book began learned that she not her cousin, Charlotte, possessed the gene.  Now Gwyneth has been thrown into the world of the Guardians, who maintain the rules and regulations of time travel.  Among other problems with learning you can time travel is the impossibly cute Gideon D'Villers, who accompanies Gwyneth into the past.

Currently, Gwyneth is charged with the task of impressing the ever creepy Count Saint-Germain.  The Count, he is tricky.  He has powers of mind control, and he maintains strict control of the present day Guardians even though his existence is in the distant past.  Oh, man.  He has now called Gwyneth to him so he can learn more about the newest time traveler.

Several mysteries present themselves during Sapphire Blue.  First, Lucy and Paul continue to elude the guardians by hiding themselves in the past.  I continue to question how Lucy and Paul fit into the present time traveling puzzle.  I have some theories...  Second, Gwyneth must attempt to figure out who she can trust.  Her mother warned her not to trust anyone, even her own feelings.  She is beginning to see how truly difficult it may be to learn who is trustworthy and who isn't.  Finally, there is Gideon.  I've got to say, I'm not sure I can figure out the mystery of Gideon either.  One minute he is all smiles and kisses and the next he seems surly.  Boys...

I continue to love this series. One of my favorite details about the book is the lavish description of the costumes Gwyneth wears.  I absolutely adore the descriptions of the fabulous gowns Gwyneth wears as she travels through time.  I cannot wait for Emerald Green.  Hopefully, all my questions will be answered.

Crown of Embers

Warning: Spoiler alert.  If you haven't read The Girl of Fire and Thorns, read it immediately!

I absolutely adore the world Rae Carson created in her Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy (watch Rae Carson give an introduction to the trilogy here).  If possible, I think I enjoyed The Crown of Embers (watch Rae Carson discuss the book here) even more than The Girl of Fire and Thorns.  Elisa continues to become a strong and confident character despite all of the obstacles she faces.

As The Crown of Embers begins, we see Elisa continuing to attempt her attempts at bringing Joya d'Arena back to its glory.  She learns that this may be more of a challenge than she originally expected.  Rumor has it that her late husband's ruling style was weak at best.  Also, it seems as though some members of the council are conspiring against her.  As if that weren't enough, spies may have also infiltrated her circle as well.  Being a young, foreign queen is tough stuff.

Also, Elisa learns that her service as the godstone bearer has probably not been fulfilled.  She learns of a quest that she knows she must complete.  She is convinced that accomplishing this task will prove she is a worthy leader, complete her service as the bearer, and unite her country. 

It was an amazing adventure.  To add to all of the excitement of the quest there is also Hector.  Ahhh, Hector.  His relationship with Elisa becomes even more complicated.  I mean, how long could Hector go on being absolutely perfect before Elisa took notice?

This one ends as quite a cliffhanger.  I really look forward to the final installment of the trilogy.  Elisa is a character that I hope gets everything she wants in the end.  I guess we'll see.

I am hoping for another novella that will give us insight into other characters like Shadow Cats did. Since the third book, The Bitter Kingdom, isn't available until fall of next year, I will need more of this magical world before then!   I absolutely encourage you to read The Girl of Fire and Thorns, Shadow Cats, and The Crown of Embers.

Blood Wounds

Blood Wounds by Susan Beth Pfeffer caught me totally by surprise.  Truly.  I really thought I saw where this book was going early on, but no, no, no.  I could never have anticipated where this story would take me.  Let me explain.

As the story begins we meet Willa.  Willa lives with her mother, step-father, and two step-sisters.  Willa knows how lucky she is that she and her mother have found Jack and his daughters because their life is quite comfortable with them.  However, as it turns out, Willa isn't as happy as she thinks she ought to be.  Willa is a cutter.  So, from that bit of information, I thought I knew this book would be about her descent into depression, therapy, and rehabilitation.  But, I couldn't have been more wrong.

The comfortable existence is rocked to the core when a call from Willa's mothers oldest friend brings some shocking news.  It seems that the father Willa never knew who remained in Texas after Willa and her mother left years ago has committed an unbelievable crime.  He has brutally murdered his current wife and two of their three daughters.  Ummm, can you say unexpected?  I thought my mind would be blown off at this point!

As the rest of the story unfolds, Willa must decide how she will deal with the unbelievable truth about the family she never really knew she had.  Willa has to confront her own fears and acknowledge the imperfections she has been trying to overcome.

This is a page turner!  I couldn't sleep while reading it;  I simply couldn't stop thinking about the book.  Clear a day from your schedule and snuggle up with this book.  Lock the door though;  it's creepy!

Susan Beth Pfeffer also wrote the Last Survivors series.  Check out my review here.

Beautiful Redemption

Spoiler Alert!  But seriously, if you haven't read this series, you are at risk of being culturally deprived!

I have such bittersweet feelings about the dramatic conclusion to the Caster Chronicles.  I've spent the last few years loving them, waiting for them, reading them, and loaning them.  Now, I will look forward to seeing the movies brought to the big screen and rereading them.  Beautiful Redemption (watch the trailer here) is absolutely breathtaking.  Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia are so gifted in their abilities to create a beautiful world that is so hauntingly appealing, yet fearful.  I sit in awe of them. 

Beautiful Redemption picks up after the breathtaking (seriously, I thought I would choke) end of Beautiful Chaos.  After his decent from the Gatlin County water tower, Ethan is fairly surprised to wake up.  As you may expect, it isn't the normal awakening though.  Ethan wakes up on the other side, where his mother is waiting for him.  I really love this part.  Finding out about his mother has always been so important to Ethan (and me as a reader), that I delighted in the opportunity to spend time with her character.  At seventeen, Ethan isn't ready to commit to his death.  Luckily, there are people who are willing to help him.

As Ethan begins his quest to retake his life, he learns he must also get help from the living world.  In order to do this, he must learn how to gain the attention of Amma and Lena.  This is tough since he can't kelt, speak, write, or touch them.  But, Ethan didn't grow up with Amma without learning a few tricks.
Of course the Dark Casters must stand in the way.  But there are a few surprises in who is able to actually stand in the way and who is able to offer assistance.  Oh my, my, my.
I absolutely with my whole being love this series.  This weekend I traveled to YALLFest, where I was excited to be up close and personal with both Margaret and Kami.  These two women are phenomenal.  I even had a chance meeting with Margaret Stohl.  That's right, be jealous.  The day prior to the festival, my friend and I decided to investigate the venues so we could properly plan our attack the next day.  While doing this, Margaret came into the Charleston Music Hall, introduced herself, invited us to the screening session, and thanked us for coming.  My heart filled with happiness.  Oh, and the screening session I mentioned was a special sneak peek of the movie, which will never be available online and was only previously screened at Comic Con.  I am one of the luckiest girls in the world!  (Notice those front row style pictures taken by yours truly!  Be jealous some more!)

If you haven't read the rest of the books and are interested, learn about them in my previous reviews Beautiful Creatures and Beautiful Darkness, Beautiful Chaos, and Dream Dark (Link's story).

Revolver

I have one word for Revolver.  Unexpected.  Seriously, I really didn't see the end coming.  Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick (watch Sedgwick read the first chapter here), a Printz honor book,  is a fast paced read that certainly caught the attention of this reader. 

Revolver tells the story of Sig Andersson, who is 15 and lives in an old cabin in the Arctic Circle.  Sig resides here with his step-mother, sister, and father.  However, the problems begin when his father stepped through a weak spot in the ice and unfortunately died.  Now, Sig is alone with the corpse after his step-mother and sister have gone for help.  As if being alone with the corpse of his father weren't bad enough, now a mysterious stranger, Wolff,  has appeared on the scene.

This is no ordinary stranger.  This man claims to be connected with Sig's father.  He claims that Sig's father owes him money, but since he is no longer able to pay, he will collect from Sig.  This is certainly new to Sig, as is the news that his father could have been involved with this nefarious man. 

Thank goodness, Sig's father taught him how to use his prized revolver.  It's as if Sig had always been trained for the moment Wolff might show up.  Now, Sig is faced with the determining how to best rid himself of the stranger.  Will he shoot?  Will he survive? 

Although this may not be the best reason to recommend a book, I'll divulge this anyway.  This book is pretty short and extremely fast paced.  The chapters are short, which always helps me read faster.  It is the type of book you could probably read in a day.  Because of this, I know several reluctant readers (as well as some who aren't) I'd like to loan this book.  Well played, Sedgwick, well played.